Force sensors for basket catheters

The disclosed technology includes a medical probe comprising a tubular shaft having a proximal end and a distal end, the tubular shaft extending along a longitudinal axis. The medical probe further comprises an expandable basket assembly coupled to the distal end of the tubular shaft. The basket assembly includes a plurality of electrodes with each electrode of the plurality of electrodes having a lumen therethrough. The basket assembly further includes a plurality of spines extending along the longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form. Each spine includes a proximal and a distal end and a strut passing through the lumen of an electrode. The strut includes a mechanical retainer disposed on the strut to prevent the electrode from sliding proximally or distally along a length of the spine.

Skip to: Description  ·  Claims  ·  References Cited  · Patent History  ·  Patent History
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to prior filed U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/386,798, filed Dec. 9, 2022, the entire contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in full herein.

FIELD

The present invention relates generally to medical devices, and in particular basket catheters capable of detecting a force applied thereto.

BACKGROUND

Cardiac arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation (AF), occur when regions of cardiac tissue abnormally conduct electrical signals to adjacent tissue. This disrupts the normal cardiac cycle and causes asynchronous rhythm. Certain procedures exist for treating arrhythmia, including surgically disrupting the origin of the signals causing the arrhythmia and disrupting the conducting pathway for such signals. By selectively ablating cardiac tissue by application of energy via a catheter, it is sometimes possible to cease or modify the propagation of unwanted electrical signals from one portion of the heart to another.

Many current ablation approaches in the art utilize radiofrequency (RF) electrical energy to heat tissue. RF ablation can have certain risks related to thermal heating which can lead to tissue charring, burning, steam pop, phrenic nerve palsy, pulmonary vein stenosis, and esophageal fistula.

Cryoablation is an alternative approach to RF ablation that generally reduces thermal risks associated with RF ablation. Maneuvering cryoablation devices and selectively applying cryoablation, however, is generally more challenging compared to RF ablation; therefore cryoablation is not viable in certain anatomical geometries which may be reached by electrical ablation devices.

Some ablation approaches use irreversible electroporation (IRE) to ablate cardiac tissue using nonthermal ablation methods. IRE delivers short pulses of high voltage to tissues and generates an unrecoverable permeabilization of cell membranes. Delivery of IRE energy to tissues using multi-electrode catheters was previously proposed in the patent literature. Examples of systems and devices configured for IRE ablation are disclosed in U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2021/0169550A1, 2021/0169567A1, 2021/0169568A1, 2021/0161592A1, 2021/0196372A1, 2021/0177503A1, and 2021/0186604A1, each of which are incorporated herein by reference and attached in the Appendix included in priority application No. 63/386,798.

Basket catheters are commonly used for mapping or ablating cardiac tissue. Basket catheters generally include a plurality of spines attached to the distal end of the catheter and configured to form a generally spherical shape. Some existing designs of basket catheters include a force sensor disposed between the catheter tube and the basket to sense force applied to the basket. A major limitation of these force sensors, however, is that the force sensor can only detect force applied to the basket as a whole and cannot determine the amount of force applied to each spine or in which direction the force is applied. As will be appreciated, knowing where and in what direction the force is applied to the basket can help a physician more accurately place the basket catheter and ensure sufficient contact is made between the electrodes on the basket catheter and the tissue. What is needed, therefore, are systems and methods for detecting the magnitude and direction of a force applied to various points of the basket catheter.

SUMMARY

There is provided, in accordance with an example of the disclosed technology, a medical probe comprising an insertion tube comprising a proximal end and a distal end. The insertion tube can extend along a longitudinal axis. The medical probe can comprise an expandable basket assembly coupled to the distal end of the insertion tube.

The expandable basket assembly can comprise a plurality of spines extending along the longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form.

The expandable basket assembly can include a plurality of electrodes with each electrode of the plurality of electrodes being attached to a spine of the plurality of spines. The medical probe can include a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly and positioned distal the distal end of the insertion tube. The force sensor can be configured to detect a force applied to the expandable basket assembly.

The disclosed technology can include a controller of a medical device. The controller can be configured to receive force data from the force sensor, calculate a force applied to the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data, and output the calculated force to a connected display.

The disclosed technology can include a controller of a medical device. The controller can be configured to receive force data from multiple strain gauges, calculate a total force applied to the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data, and output the calculated force to a connected display.

The disclosed technology can include a medical system comprising a medical probe having an expandable basket assembly. The expandable basket assembly can comprise a plurality of spines extending along a longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form. The expandable basket can include a plurality of electrodes. Each electrode of the plurality of electrodes can be attached to a spine of the plurality of spines. The expandable basket can comprise a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly. The expandable basket can comprise a controller comprising a processor and a memory in communication with the processor, the memory storing instructions configured to cause the controller to determine a change in electrical resistance of the force sensor, and determine, based on the change in electrical resistance, a force applied to the expandable basket assembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic pictorial illustration of a medical system including a medical probe whose distal end includes a basket assembly with electrodes, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIG. 2A is a schematic pictorial illustration showing a perspective view of a medical probe in an expanded form, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIG. 2B is a schematic pictorial illustration showing a side view of a medical probe in a collapsed form, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIG. 3 is a schematic pictorial illustration of a contact force sensor showing displacement as the contact force sensor is compressed, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective views of a basket catheter with a force sensor attached thereto, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective and detail views of a basket catheter with a plurality of force sensors attached thereto, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective and detail views of another basket catheter with a plurality of force sensors attached thereto, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective and detail views of another basket catheter with a plurality of force sensors integrated into the spines, in accordance with the disclosed technology;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing a side view of a spine of a given medical device, in accordance with the disclosed technology; and

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a medical probe having a basket assembly and a force sensor, in accordance with the disclosed technology.

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description should be read with reference to the drawings, in which like elements in different drawings are identically numbered. The drawings, which are not necessarily to scale, depict selected embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The detailed description illustrates by way of example, not by way of limitation, the principles of the invention. This description will clearly enable one skilled in the art to make and use the invention, and describes several embodiments, adaptations, variations, alternatives and uses of the invention, including what is presently believed to be the best mode of carrying out the invention.

As used herein, the terms “about” or “approximately” for any numerical values or ranges indicate a suitable dimensional tolerance that allows the part or collection of components to function for its intended purpose as described herein. More specifically, “about” or “approximately” may refer to the range of values ±20% of the recited value, e.g. “about 90%” may refer to the range of values from 71% to 110%. In addition, as used herein, the terms “patient.” “host.” “user,” and “subject” refer to any human or animal subject and are not intended to limit the systems or methods to human use, although use of the subject invention in a human patient represents a preferred embodiment. As well, the term “proximal” indicates a location closer to the operator or physician whereas “distal” indicates a location further away to the operator or physician.

As discussed herein, vasculature of a “patient.” “host.” “user.” and “subject” can be vasculature of a human or any animal. It should be appreciated that an animal can be a variety of any applicable type, including, but not limited thereto, mammal, veterinarian animal, livestock animal or pet type animal, etc. As an example, the animal can be a laboratory animal specifically selected to have certain characteristics similar to a human (e.g., rat, dog, pig, monkey, or the like). It should be appreciated that the subject can be any applicable human patient, for example.

As discussed herein, “operator” can include a physician, doctor, surgeon, technician, scientist, or any other individual or delivery instrumentation associated with delivery of a multi-electrode catheter for the treatment of drug refractory atrial fibrillation to a subject.

As discussed herein, the term “ablate” or “ablation”, as it relates to the devices and corresponding systems of this disclosure, refers to components and structural features configured to reduce or prevent the generation of erratic cardiac signals in the cells by utilizing non-thermal energy, such as irreversible electroporation (IRE), referred throughout this disclosure interchangeably as pulsed electric field (PEF) and pulsed field ablation (PFA). Ablating or ablation as it relates to the devices and corresponding systems of this disclosure is used throughout this disclosure in reference to non-thermal ablation of cardiac tissue for certain conditions including, but not limited to, arrhythmias, atrial flutter ablation, pulmonary vein isolation, supraventricular tachycardia ablation, and ventricular tachycardia ablation. The term “ablate” or “ablation” also includes known methods, devices, and systems to achieve various forms of bodily tissue ablation as understood by a person skilled in the relevant art.

As discussed herein, the terms “bipolar” and “unipolar” when used to refer to ablation schemes describe ablation schemes which differ with respect to electrical current path and electric field distribution. “Bipolar” refers to ablation scheme utilizing a current path between two electrodes that are both positioned at a treatment site; current density and electric flux density is typically approximately equal at each of the two electrodes. “Unipolar” refers to ablation scheme utilizing a current path between two electrodes where one electrode having a high current density and high electric flux density is positioned at a treatment site, and a second electrode having comparatively lower current density and lower electric flux density is positioned remotely from the treatment site.

As discussed herein, the terms “biphasic pulse” and “monophasic pulse” refer to respective electrical signals. “Biphasic pulse” refers to an electrical signal having a positive-voltage phase pulse (referred to herein as “positive phase”) and a negative-voltage phase pulse (referred to herein as “negative phase”). “Monophasic pulse” refers to an electrical signal having only a positive or only a negative phase. Preferably, a system providing the biphasic pulse is configured to prevent application of a direct current voltage (DC) to a patient. For instance, the average voltage of the biphasic pulse can be zero volts with respect to ground or other common reference voltage. Additionally, or alternatively, the system can include a capacitor or other protective component. Where voltage amplitude of the biphasic and/or monophasic pulse is described herein, it is understood that the expressed voltage amplitude is an absolute value of the approximate peak amplitude of each of the positive-voltage phase and/or the negative-voltage phase. Each phase of the biphasic and monophasic pulse preferably has a square shape having an essentially constant voltage amplitude during a majority of the phase duration. Phases of the biphasic pulse are separated in time by an interphase delay. The interphase delay duration is preferably less than or approximately equal to the duration of a phase of the biphasic pulse. The interphase delay duration is more preferably about 25% of the duration of the phase of the biphasic pulse.

As discussed herein, the terms “tubular” and “tube” are to be construed broadly and are not limited to a structure that is a right cylinder or strictly circumferential in cross-section or of a uniform cross-section throughout its length. For example, the tubular structures are generally illustrated as a substantially right cylindrical structure. However, the tubular structures may have a tapered or curved outer surface without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The term “temperature rating”, as used herein, is defined as the maximum continuous temperature that a component can withstand during its lifetime without causing thermal damage, such as melting or thermal degradation (e.g., charring and crumbling) of the component.

Reference is made to FIG. 1 showing an example catheter-based electrophysiology mapping and ablation system 10. System 10 includes multiple catheters, which are percutaneously inserted by operator 24 through the patient's 23 vascular system into a chamber or vascular structure of a heart 12. Typically, a delivery sheath catheter is inserted into the left or right atrium near a desired location in heart 12. Thereafter, a plurality of catheters can be inserted into the delivery sheath catheter so as to arrive at the desired location. The plurality of catheters may include catheters dedicated for sensing Intracardiac Electrogram (IEGM) signals, catheters dedicated for ablating and/or catheters dedicated for both sensing and ablating. An example catheter 14 that is configured for sensing IEGM is illustrated herein. Operator 24 brings a basket catheter 28 into contact with the heart wall for sensing a target site in heart 12. For ablation, operator 24 would similarly bring a distal end of an ablation catheter to a target site for ablating.

Catheter 14 is an exemplary catheter that includes one and preferably multiple electrodes 26 optionally distributed over a plurality of spines 22 forming a basket assembly 28 at a distal end and configured to sense the IEGM signals. Catheter 14 may additionally include a position sensor 29 embedded in or near the distal tip for tracking position and orientation of basket assembly 28. Optionally and preferably, position sensor 29 is a magnetic based position sensor including three magnetic coils for sensing three-dimensional (3D) position and orientation.

Magnetic based position sensor 29 may be operated together with a location pad 25 including a plurality of magnetic coils 32 configured to generate magnetic fields in a predefined working volume. Real time position of basket assembly 28 of catheter 14 may be tracked based on magnetic fields generated with location pad 25 and sensed by magnetic based position sensor 29. Details of the magnetic based position sensing technology are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,391,199; 5,443,489; 5,558,091; 6,172,499; 6,239,724; 6,332,089; 6,484,118; 6,618,612; 6,690,963; 6,788,967; 6,892,091, each of which are incorporated herein by reference and attached in the Appendix included in priority application No. 63/386,798.

System 10 includes one or more electrode patches 38 positioned for skin contact on patient 23 to establish location reference for location pad 25 as well as impedance-based tracking of electrodes 26. For impedance-based tracking, electrical current is directed toward electrodes 26 and sensed at electrode skin patches 38 so that the location of each electrode can be triangulated via the electrode patches 38. Details of the impedance-based location tracking technology are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,536,218; 7,756,576; 7,848,787; 7,869,865; and 8,456,182, each of which are incorporated herein by reference and attached in the Appendix included in priority application No. 63/386,798.

A recorder 11 displays electrograms 21 captured with body surface ECG electrodes 18 and intracardiac electrograms (IEGM) captured with electrodes 26 of catheter 14. Recorder 11 may include pacing capability for pacing the heart rhythm and/or may be electrically connected to a standalone pacer.

System 10 may include an ablation energy generator 50 that is adapted to conduct ablative energy to one or more of electrodes at a distal tip of a catheter configured for ablating. Energy produced by ablation energy generator 50 may include, but is not limited to, radiofrequency (RF) energy or pulsed-field ablation (PFA) energy, including monopolar or bipolar high-voltage DC pulses as may be used to effect irreversible electroporation (IRE), or combinations thereof. The signals may be biphasic or monophasic.

Patient interface unit (PIU) 30 is an interface configured to establish electrical communication between catheters, electrophysiological equipment, power supply and a workstation 55 for controlling operation of system 10. Electrophysiological equipment of system 10 may include for example, multiple catheters, location pad 25, body surface ECG electrodes 18, electrode patches 38, ablation energy generator 50, and recorder 11. Optionally and preferably, PIU 30 additionally includes processing capability for implementing real-time computations of location of the catheters and for performing ECG calculations.

Workstation 55 includes memory, processor unit with memory or storage with appropriate operating software loaded therein, and user interface capability. Workstation 55 may provide multiple functions, optionally including (1) modeling the endocardial anatomy in three-dimensions (3D) and rendering the model or anatomical map 20 for display on a display device 27, (2) displaying on display device 27 activation sequences (or other data) compiled from recorded electrograms 21 in representative visual indicia or imagery superimposed on the rendered anatomical map 20, (3) displaying real-time location and orientation of multiple catheters within the heart chamber, and (5) displaying on display device 27 sites of interest such as places where ablation energy has been applied. One commercial product embodying elements of the system 10 is available as the CARTO™ 3 System, available from Biosense Webster, Inc., 31A Technology Drive, Irvine, CA 92618.

FIG. 2A is a schematic pictorial illustration showing a perspective view of a medical probe 200 having a basket assembly 28 in an expanded form when unconstrained, such as by being advanced out of a tubular shaft lumen 80 at a distal end 36 of a tubular shaft 82. FIG. 2B shows the basket assembly in a collapsed form within tubular shaft 82. In the expanded form (FIG. 2A), the spines 22 bow radially outwardly along a longitudinal axis 86 and in the collapsed form (FIG. 2B) the spines are constrained generally along the longitudinal axis 86 of tubular shaft 82.

As shown in FIG. 2A, basket assembly 28 includes a plurality of flexible spines 22 that are formed at the end of a tubular shaft 84 and are connected at both ends. During a medical procedure, operator 24 can deploy basket assembly 28 by extending tubular shaft 84 from tubular shaft 82 causing the basket assembly 28 to exit the tubular shaft 84 and transition to the expanded form. Spines 22 may have elliptical (e.g., circular) or rectangular (that may appear to be flat) cross-sections, and include a flexible, resilient material (e.g., a shape-memory alloy such as nickel-titanium, also known as Nitinol) forming a strut as will be described in greater detail herein.

In examples described herein, electrodes 40 can be configured to deliver ablation energy (RF and/or IRE) to tissue in heart 12. In addition to using electrodes 40 to deliver ablation energy, the electrodes can also be used to measure a physiological property such as local surface electrical potentials at respective locations on tissue in heart 12. The electrodes 40 can be biased such that a greater portion of the electrode 40 faces outwardly from the basket assembly 39 such that the electrodes 40 deliver a greater amount of electrical energy outwardly away from the basket assembly 28 (i.e., toward the heart 12 tissue) than inwardly toward the basket catheter 38.

Examples of materials ideally suited for forming electrodes 40 include gold, platinum, and palladium (and their respective alloys). These materials also have high thermal conductivity which allows the minimal heat generated on the tissue (i.e., by the ablation energy delivered to the tissue) to be conducted through the electrodes to the back side of the electrodes (i.e., the portions of the electrodes on the inner sides of the spines), and then to the blood pool in heart 12.

Basket assembly 28 can include a stem 96 that extends longitudinally from a distal end 36 of shaft 84 towards distal end 94 of basket assembly 28. The disclosed technology can include an irrigation system that delivers irrigation fluid to spray ports 98. For example, stem 96 can include multiple spray ports 98, wherein each given spray port 98 can be angled to aim delivery of the irrigation fluid to either a given electrode 40 or to tissue in heart 12. The electrodes 40 can be cooled by aiming the irrigation fluid, via spray ports 98, at the portion of the electrodes 40 on the inner side of the spines 22.

The basket assembly 28 can include a central intersection 211 at a point where the spines 22 converge near the distal end 94. The basket assembly 28 can include contact force sensor assembly 220 attached to the central intersections 211. By attaching the contact force sensor assembly 220 to the central intersection 211, the contact force sensor assembly 220 can be configured to detect a force applied to the basket assembly 28 at the distal end 94. In this way, the contact force sensor assembly 220 can be configured to more easily detect a force applied to the basket assembly 28 (e.g., when the basket assembly 28 contacts tissue).

The contact force sensor assembly 220 can be or include any suitable type of contact force sensor for the application. For example, the contact force sensor assembly 220 can be a load cell, a strain gauge, a piezoelectric sensor, a force sensing resistor, a magnetic force sensor, etc.

As one non-limiting example illustrated in FIG. 3, the contact force sensor assembly 220 can include a proximal end 221 and a distal end 223. The proximal end 221 can house a magnetic field generator coil 222 and the distal end 223 can house a magnetic field sensor 224, or vice versa. As will be appreciated, the magnetic field generator coil 222 can be configured to generate a magnetic field while the magnetic field sensor 224 can be configured to detect the presence and magnitude of the magnetic field.

The contact force sensor assembly 220 can further include a deflection portion 226 disposed between the proximal end 221 and the distal end 223. The deflection portion 226 can be configured to deflect when a force is applied to the contact force sensor assembly 220. In other words, the deflection portion 226 can be configured to permit the proximal end 221 and the distal end 223 of the contact force sensor assembly 220 to move closer to each other when a force is applied to the contact force sensor assembly 220. To illustrate, FIG. 3 shows a change in position “X” when the deflection portion 226 is compressed as a force is applied to the contact force sensor 220. As will be appreciated, the change in position “X” increases (or be a greater distance) when the deflection portion 226 is compressed to a greater extent.

In one example, the deflection portion 226 is a spring positioned between the proximal end 221 and the distal end 223. As another example, the deflection portion 226 can comprise a helical spring formed into a body of the contact force sensor assembly 220. For example, helical cuts can be made in the body of the contact force sensor assembly 220 to form a helical spring. In this way, the body of the contact force sensor assembly 220 can itself form a spring without the need for additional components.

As will be appreciated, when the distal end 223 is moved closer to the proximal end 221 when a force is applied to the contact force sensor assembly 220, the magnetic field sensor can detect a change in the magnitude of the force of the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator coil. Because the spring constant K of the deflection portion 226 can be predetermined and the distance between the magnetic field generator coil and the magnetic field sensor can be detected as the distal end 223 is brought closer to the proximal end 221, the force applied to the basket catheter 28 can be determined (e.g., by using Hooke's law, or the equation F=d*K). Furthermore, the contact force sensor assembly 220 can receive electrical signals from, and provides electrical signals to, workstation 55, to process received signals and determine forces, e.g., sub-gram forces, exerted on the basket assembly 28.

In the examples shown and described in FIGS. 4A-6B, the force sensor 430 can be a strain gauge, or other electrical resistance-based sensor, attached directly to the basket catheter 28. In this way, the disclosed technology can be better configured to detect a force applied to the basket catheter 28. To illustrate, FIGS. 4A and 4B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective views of a basket catheter 428 with a force sensor 430 attached thereto, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, and in contrast with existing basket catheters, the force sensor 430 can be attached to a spine 22 of the basket catheter 428. The force sensor 430 can be attached to an inwardly-facing surface (as shown in FIG. 4A) or an outwardly-facing surface (as shown in FIG. 4B) depending on the particular configuration. As will be appreciated, depending on which surface the force sensor 430 is attached to (either inwardly-facing surface or outwardly-facing surface) the force sensor 430 can detect compressive or tensile forces depending on how a force is applied to the basket catheter 428. For example, as the central intersection 211 is pushed toward the proximal end of the basket catheter 428, the spines 22 flex and an outwardly-facing surface of the spine 22 experiences tensile forces while the inwardly-facing surface of the spine 22 experiences compressive forces. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the workstation 55 can be programmed and calibrated to accurately analyze the change in signals received from the force sensor 430 depending on which surface of the spine 22 the force sensor 430 is placed.

Turning now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, a basket catheter 528 can include a plurality of force sensors 430 attached to the spines 22. In particular FIG. 5A illustrates a perspective view and FIG. 5B illustrates a detail view of the basket catheter 528 with a plurality of force sensors 430 attached thereto. Although FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate the basket catheter 528 having the force sensors 430 attached to an outwardly-facing surface of the spine 22, one of skill in the art will appreciate that the contact force sensors 430 can alternatively or additionally be attached to an inwardly-facing surface.

By including a plurality of force sensors 430 attached to the spines 22, the disclosed technology can be configured to more accurately detect a force applied to the basket catheter 528 than basket catheters 28 having only a single force sensor. For example, the workstation 55 can be configured to know which force sensor 430 is attached to which spine 22 (i.e., the workstation 55 can be programmed to correlate a signal received from a given force sensor 430 to an assigned spine 22 of the basket catheter 528). In this way, the workstation 55 can receive force signals from each of the force sensors 430 and determine the force at each spine 22 based on signals received from the assigned force sensor 430 attached to a given spine 22. In other words, the workstation 55 can be configured to detect a force applied to each spine 22 individually, determine how much force is applied to each spine 22, and determine a direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 528. For example, as a force is applied to a first side of the basket catheter 528, the degree to which each force sensor 430 is either compressed or strained can indicate where the force is originating from. To illustrate, the spine 22 nearest the location where the force is applied is more likely to compress on an outwardly-facing surface while the outwardly-facing surface of a spine 22 located further away from the location of the force is more likely to stretch as the force is applied. Thus, by correlating the type of force (compressive or tensile) and the magnitude of the force detected by a given force sensor 430 with the known position of the spine 22 on the basket catheter 528, the disclosed technology can be configured to detect the magnitude and direction of a force applied to the basket catheter 528. The disclosed technology can further determine a difference in the force applied to a first side of the basket catheter 28 and a second side of the basket catheter 28. Furthermore based on the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 528, the disclosed technology can be configured to determine a deflection of the basket catheter 528. As will be appreciated, knowing the deflection of the basket catheter 528 can helpful to determine whether the electrodes 26 have made sufficient contact with tissue.

For contact force sensors 430 can be sized and position as would be suitable for the particular application. For example, although the plurality of force sensors 430 are shown as having a given length and positioned on the spine 22 at the given illustrated positions, one of skill in the art will appreciate that he force sensors 430 can be larger or smaller than those shown in the figures. Furthermore, although FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate only a single force sensor 430 attached to a single spine 22, the disclosed technology can include multiple force sensors 430 attached to a given spine 22. Furthermore, the force sensors 430 can be attached to the spine 22 using any suitable method. For example, the force sensors 430 can be attached to the spine 22 using adhesive, fasteners, crimps, etc.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective and detail views of a basket catheter 628 with a plurality of force sensor arrays 630 attached thereto. All of the features just described in relation to the basket catheter 528 can be incorporated into the basket catheter 628. However, rather than having a single force sensor 430 attached to the spine 22 as shown and described with the basket catheter 528, the basket catheter 628 can have a plurality of sensor arrays 630 attached to the spines 22. The sensor arrays 630 can comprise a plurality of force sensors 632A, 632B, and 632C arranged in different directions. For example, the sensor arrays 630 can comprise three sensors arranged at 120° in relation to each other. In this way, the sensor array 630 can be used to detect a direction of force applied to the spine 22. As will be appreciated, strain gauges are typically well suited for detecting compressive or tensile forces in a given direction but generally unable to accurately detect a force in a direction transverse to the given direction. Thus, by arranging several force sensors 632A, 632B, and 632C in differing directions, the sensor array 630 can be configured to better detect a direction of a force applied to the spine 22.

The workstation 55 can be configured to receive force data from each force sensor 632A, 632B, and 632C and, based on the received data, determine a magnitude and direction of the force applied to the spine 22. Furthermore, the workstation 55 can compile all of the force data received from each for sensor 632A, 632B, and 632C from each spine 22 and determine the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 628. Furthermore based on the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 628, the disclosed technology can be configured to determine a deflection of the basket catheter 628.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing perspective and detail views of another basket catheter 728 with a plurality of force sensors 730 integrated into the spines 22, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. All of the features described in relation to the basket catheter 528 can be incorporated into the basket catheter 728. However, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the basket catheter 728 can include force sensors 730 formed into the spines 22 of the basket catheter 728. For example, the spines 22 can be made from nitinol, cobalt chromium, stainless steel, titanium, or some other biocompatible conductive material. The spine 22 can be formed to include a conductive section that has a variable electrical resistive properties as it is deformed, similar to a strain gauge. The workstation 55 can be configured to detect a change in the electrical resistance through the spine 22 due to the force sensor 730 being built directly into the spine 22. Furthermore, the workstation 55 can be configured to detect the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 728 as previously describe in the other examples given herein.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are schematic pictorial illustrations showing a side view of a spine 22 of a given basket catheter 28, in accordance with examples of the disclosed technology. As will be appreciated, the spine 22 illustrated in FIGS. 8A and 8B is a single spine 22 and can be representative of the plurality of spines 22 of the basket assembly 28 described herein. In other words, the plurality of spines 22 forming the basket assembly 28 can each be configured to form the same or similar shape when in the expanded form such that the plurality of spines 22 together form a desired shape. To illustrate, the spine 22 as shown in FIG. 8A can be configured to form an approximately circular shape when in the expanded form. Thus, when combined with other spines 22 to form the basket assembly 28, the plurality of spines 22 can be configured to form an approximately spherical shape when the basket assembly 28 is in the expanded form. As another example, the spine 22 shown in FIG. 8B can be configured to form an approximately elliptical shape when in the expanded form. Thus, when combined with other spines 22 to form the basket assembly 28, the plurality of spines 22 can be configured to form an approximately oblate-spheroid shape when the basket assembly 28 is in the expanded form. Although not every variation of shape is shown or described herein, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the spines 22 can be further configured to form other various shapes as would be suitable for the particular application.

By including spines 22 configured to form various shapes when in the expanded form, the basket assembly 28 can be configured to position the various electrodes 40 attached to the spines 22 at various locations, with each location being nearer or farther from the distal end of the flexible tubular shaft 82. For example, an electrode 40 attached to the spine 22 illustrated in FIG. 8A near the middle of the spine 22 would be farther from the distal end of the flexible tubular shaft 82 than the spine 22 illustrated in FIG. 8B when the basket assembly 28 is in the expanded form.

The workstation 55 can be calibrated to detect the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 28 depending on which shape the basket 28 is configured to take when fully expanded. For example, as will be appreciated, as basket catheter 28 having a more spherical shape will exhibit slightly different characteristics as it deflects when a force is applied than a basket catheter 28 having a more oblate-spheroid shape. Thus, by calibrating the workstation 55 to analyze the data received from the force sensors 430, 630, 730 dependent on the shape of the basket catheter 28, the workstation 55 can more accurately determine the magnitude and direction of the force applied to the basket catheter 28.

The disclosed technology can further include an electrically resistive jacket disposed over the spines 22 to electrically isolate the spines 22 from the electrodes 26. In this way, the electrodes 26 can be prevented from forming a short circuit to the spine 22.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method 900 of operating a medical probe, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The method 900 can include aligning receiving 902 force data from one or more force sensors (e.g., force sensors 430, 630, 730) attached to a spine (e.g., spine 22) of a basket catheter (e.g., basket catheter 28, 428, 528, 628, 728). The method 900 can include determining 904 a force applied to the basket catheter. For example, the method 900 can include determining a magnitude and a direction of a force applied to the basket catheter. The method 900 can further include determining 906 a difference in force applied to a first side of the basket catheter compared to a second side of the basket catheter. The method can include determining 908 a deflection of the basket catheter and outputting 910 the calculated force, the calculated difference in force, and/or the calculated deflection. Outputting the calculated force, the calculated difference in force, and/or the calculated deflection can include outputting the foregoing to a connected display and/or to a processor for further processing. Further processing, for example, can include correlating the calculated force, the calculated difference in force, and/or the calculated deflection to an image of a basket catheter to illustrate a deflection of the basket catheter.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the method 900 can include any of the various features of the disclosed technology described herein and can be varied depending on the particular configuration. That is, the method 900 can be varied to include any of the features described in relation to basket catheter 28, basket catheter 428, basket catheter 528, basket catheter 628, and/or basket catheter 728.

The disclosed technology described herein can be further understood according to the following clauses:

Clause 1: A medical probe, comprising: an insertion tube having a proximal end and a distal end, the insertion tube extending along a longitudinal axis; and an expandable basket assembly coupled to the distal end of the insertion tube, the expandable basket assembly comprising: a plurality of spines extending along the longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form; a plurality of electrodes, each electrode of the plurality of electrodes being attached to a spine of the plurality of spines; and a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly and positioned distal the distal end of the insertion tube, the force sensor configured to detect a force applied to the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 2: The medical probe according to Clause 1, wherein the force sensor is configured to detect a difference in force applied to a first side of the expandable basket assembly compared to a second side of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 3: The medical probe according to Clause 2, wherein the force sensor is further configured to detect the force applied to each spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 4: The medical probe according to Clause 1, wherein the expandable basket assembly comprises a proximal end and a distal end, and wherein the force sensor is attached to the distal end of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 5: The medical probe according to Clause 4, wherein the force sensor is attached to a spine intersection of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 6: The medical probe according to Clause 4 or 5, wherein the force sensor comprises a strain gauge attached to a distal end of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 7: The medical probe according to Clause 4 or 5, wherein the force sensor comprises: a magnetic field generator coil configured to generate a magnetic field; a magnetic field sensor, the magnetic field sensor being configured to detect a change in a magnitude of the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator; and a spring disposed between the generator coil and the sensor.

Clause 8: The medical probe according to Clause 1, wherein the force sensor comprises at least one strain gauge.

Clause 9: The medical probe according to Clause 8, wherein the at least one strain gauge comprises three strain gauges disposed in different directions on each spine so that a direction of a force applied to the spine on which the strain gauges are disposed thereon can be determined.

Clause 10: The medical probe according to Clause 8, wherein the strain gauge is attached to a spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 11: The medical probe according to Clause 10, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an inwardly-facing surface of the spine, the inwardly-facing surface of the spine facing toward an inner portion of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 12: The medical probe according to Clause 10, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an outwardly-facing surface of the spine, the outwardly-facing surface of the spine facing outwardly from the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 13: The medical probe according to Clause 10 further comprising a plurality of strain gauges, wherein each strain gauge of the plurality of strain gauges is attached to a respective spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 14: The medical probe according to Clause 1, wherein at least one spine of the plurality of spines forms a strain gauge such that the at least one spine of the plurality of spines is configured change a resistance of an electrical current passing through the at least one spine of the plurality of spines when there is a change in force applied to the at least one spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 15: The medical probe according to Clause 14, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines forms a strain gauge.

Clause 16: The medical probe according to Clauses 1-15, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines is made from nitinol.

Clause 17: The medical probe according to any of Clauses 1-15, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines comprises a material selected from a group consisting of nitinol, cobalt chromium, stainless steel, titanium.

Clause 18: The medical probe according to any of Clauses 1-17, wherein the plurality of spines is configured to form an approximately spherically-shaped basket assembly when in the expanded form.

Clause 19: The medical probe according to any of Clauses 1-17, wherein the plurality of spines is configured form an approximately oblate-spheroid basket assembly when in the expanded form.

Clause 20: The medical probe according to any of Clauses 1-19, further comprising spray ports configured to deliver an irrigation fluid to the plurality of electrodes.

Clause 21: The medical probe according to any of Clauses 1-20, further comprising a plurality of electrically insulative jackets each disposed between a respective spine of the plurality of spines and a respective electrode of the plurality of electrodes, thereby electrically isolating the plurality of electrodes from the plurality of spines.

Clause 22: A controller of a medical device, the controller configured to: receive force data from the force sensor of the medical probe of Clause 1; calculate a force applied to the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and output the calculated force to a connected display.

Clause 23: The controller of the medical device of Clause 22, wherein the controller is further configured to: calculate a difference in force applied to a first side of the expandable basket assembly compared to a second side of the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and output the calculated difference in force to the connected display.

Clause 24: The controller of the medical device of Clause 23, wherein the controller is further configured to: calculate a deflection of the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the calculated difference in force; and output the calculated deflection to the connected display.

Clause 25: A controller of a medical device, the controller configured to: receive force data from each strain gauge of the medical probe of Clause 13; calculate a total force applied to the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and output the calculated force to a connected display.

Clause 26: The controller of the medical device of Clause 25, wherein the controller is further configured to: calculate an individual force applied to each spine of the plurality of spines; and output the calculated individual forces to the connected display.

Clause 27: The controller of the medical device of Clause 26, wherein the controller is further configured to: calculate a deflection of the basket assembly based at least in part on the calculated individual forces; and output the calculated deflection to the connected display.

Clause 28: A medical system comprising: a medical probe having an expandable basket assembly, the expandable basket assembly comprising: a plurality of spines extending along a longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form; a plurality of electrodes, each electrode of the plurality of electrodes being attached to a spine of the plurality of spines; and a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly; and a controller comprising a processor and a memory in communication with the processor, the memory storing instructions configured to cause the controller to: determine a change in resistance of the force sensor; and determine, based on the change in resistance, a force applied to the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 29: The medical system according to Clause 28, wherein the force sensor is a strain gauge.

Clause 30: The medical system according to Clause 29, wherein the strain gauge is disposed at a distal end of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 31: The medical system according to Clause 29, wherein the strain gauge is disposed on a spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 32: The medical system according to Clause 31, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an inwardly-facing surface of the spine, the inwardly-facing surface of the spine facing toward an inner portion of the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 33: The medical system according to Clause 31, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an outwardly-facing surface of the spine, the outwardly-facing surface of the spine facing outwardly from the expandable basket assembly.

Clause 34: The medical system according to Clause 29 further comprising a plurality of strain gauges, wherein each strain gauge of the plurality of strain gauges is attached to a respective spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 35: The medical system according to Clause 29, wherein at least one spine of the plurality of spines forms a strain gauge such that the at least one spine of the plurality of spines is configured change a resistance of an electrical current passing through the at least one spine of the plurality of spines when there is a change in force applied to the at least one spine of the plurality of spines.

Clause 36: The medical system according to Clause 35, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines forms a strain gauge.

Clause 37: The medical system according to Clauses 28-36, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines is made from nitinol.

Clause 38: The medical system according to any of Clauses 28-36, wherein each spine of the plurality of spines comprises a material selected from a group consisting of nitinol, cobalt chromium, stainless steel, titanium.

Clause 39: The medical system according to any of Clauses 28-38, wherein the plurality of spines is configured to form an approximately spherically-shaped basket assembly when in the expanded form.

Clause 40: The medical system according to any of Clauses 28-38, wherein the plurality of spines is configured form an approximately oblate-spheroid basket assembly when in the expanded form.

Clause 41: The medical system according to any of Clauses 28-40, further comprising spray ports configured to deliver an irrigation fluid to the plurality of electrodes.

Clause 42: The medical system according to any of Clauses 28-41, further comprising a plurality of electrically insulative jackets each disposed between a respective spine of the plurality of spines and a respective electrode of the plurality of electrodes, thereby electrically isolating the plurality of electrodes from the plurality of spines.

The embodiments described above are cited by way of example, and the present invention is not limited by what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather, the scope of the invention includes both combinations and sub combinations of the various features described hereinabove, as well as variations and modifications thereof which would occur to persons skilled in the art upon reading the foregoing description and which are not disclosed in the prior art.

Claims

1. A medical system, comprising:

an insertion tube having a proximal end and a distal end, the insertion tube extending along a longitudinal axis; and
an expandable basket assembly coupled to the distal end of the insertion tube, the expandable basket assembly comprising: a plurality of spines extending along the longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form; a plurality of electrodes, each electrode of the plurality of electrodes being attached to a spine of the plurality of spines; and a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly and positioned distal the distal end of the insertion tube, the force sensor configured to detect a force applied to the expandable basket assembly; and
a controller configured to: receive force data from the force sensor; calculate a difference in force applied to a first side of the expandable basket assembly compared to a second side of the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and output the calculated difference in force to a display.

2. The medical system according to claim 1, wherein the expandable basket assembly comprises a proximal end and a distal end, and

wherein the force sensor is attached to the distal end of the expandable basket assembly.

3. The medical system according to claim 2, wherein the force sensor is attached to a spine intersection of the expandable basket assembly.

4. The medical system according to claim 2, wherein the force sensor comprises a strain gauge attached to a distal end of the expandable basket assembly.

5. The medical system according to claim 2, wherein the force sensor comprises:

a magnetic field generator coil configured to generate a magnetic field;
a magnetic field sensor, the magnetic field sensor being configured to detect a change in a magnitude of the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator; and
a spring disposed between the generator coil and the sensor.

6. The medical system according to claim 1, wherein the force sensor comprises at least one strain gauge.

7. The medical system according to claim 6, wherein the at least one strain gauge comprises three strain gauges disposed in different directions on each spine so that a direction of a force applied to the spine on which the strain gauges are disposed thereon can be determined.

8. The medical system according to claim 6, wherein the strain gauge is attached to a spine of the plurality of spines.

9. The medical system according to claim 8, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an inwardly-facing surface of the spine, the inwardly-facing surface of the spine facing toward an inner portion of the expandable basket assembly.

10. The medical system according to claim 8, wherein the strain gauge is attached to an outwardly-facing surface of the spine, the outwardly-facing surface of the spine facing outwardly from the expandable basket assembly.

11. The medical system according to claim 8 further comprising a plurality of strain gauges,

wherein each strain gauge of the plurality of strain gauges is attached to a respective spine of the plurality of spines.

12. The medical system according to claim 1, wherein at least one spine of the plurality of spines forms a strain gauge such that the at least one spine of the plurality of spines is configured change a resistance of an electrical current passing through the at least one spine of the plurality of spines when there is a change in force applied to the at least one spine of the plurality of spines.

13. The medical system according to claim 1, the controller configured to:

calculate a force applied to the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and
output the calculated force to a display.

14. The medical system according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

calculate a deflection of the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the calculated difference in force; and
output the calculated deflection to the display.

15. A medical system comprising:

a medical probe having an expandable basket assembly, the expandable basket assembly comprising: a plurality of spines extending along a longitudinal axis and configured to bow radially outward from the longitudinal axis when the expandable basket assembly is transitioned from a collapsed form to an expanded form; a plurality of electrodes, each electrode of the plurality of electrodes being attached to a spine of the plurality of spines; and a force sensor attached to the expandable basket assembly; and
a controller comprising one or more processors and a memory in communication with the one or more processors, the memory storing instructions configured to cause the controller to: receive force data from the force sensor; calculate a difference in force applied to a first side of the expandable basket assembly compared to a second side of the expandable basket assembly based at least in part on the received force data; and output the calculated difference in force to a display.

16. The medical system according to claim 15, wherein the force sensor comprises a strain gauge.

17. The medical system according to claim 16 further comprising a plurality of strain gauges,

wherein each strain gauge of the plurality of strain gauges is attached to a respective spine of the plurality of spines.
Referenced Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
4699147 October 13, 1987 Chilson et al.
4940064 July 10, 1990 Desai
5215103 June 1, 1993 Desai
5255679 October 26, 1993 Imran
5293869 March 15, 1994 Edwards et al.
5309910 May 10, 1994 Edwards et al.
5313943 May 24, 1994 Houser et al.
5324284 June 28, 1994 Imran
5345936 September 13, 1994 Pomeranz et al.
5365926 November 22, 1994 Desai
5391199 February 21, 1995 Ben-Haim
5396887 March 14, 1995 Imran
5400783 March 28, 1995 Pomeranz et al.
5411025 May 2, 1995 Webster, Jr.
5415166 May 16, 1995 Imran
5443489 August 22, 1995 Ben-Haim
5456254 October 10, 1995 Pietroski et al.
5465717 November 14, 1995 Imran et al.
5476495 December 19, 1995 Kordis et al.
5499981 March 19, 1996 Kordis
5526810 June 18, 1996 Wang
5546940 August 20, 1996 Panescu et al.
5549108 August 27, 1996 Edwards et al.
5558073 September 24, 1996 Pomeranz et al.
5558091 September 24, 1996 Acker et al.
5577509 November 26, 1996 Panescu et al.
5595183 January 21, 1997 Swanson et al.
5598848 February 4, 1997 Swanson et al.
5609157 March 11, 1997 Panescu et al.
5628313 May 13, 1997 Webster, Jr.
5681280 October 28, 1997 Rusk et al.
5722401 March 3, 1998 Pietroski et al.
5722403 March 3, 1998 McGee et al.
5725525 March 10, 1998 Kordis
5730128 March 24, 1998 Pomeranz et al.
5772590 June 30, 1998 Webster, Jr.
5782899 July 21, 1998 Imran
5823189 October 20, 1998 Kordis
5881727 March 16, 1999 Edwards
5893847 April 13, 1999 Kordis
5904680 May 18, 1999 Kordis et al.
5911739 June 15, 1999 Kordis et al.
5928228 July 27, 1999 Kordis et al.
5968040 October 19, 1999 Swanson et al.
6014579 January 11, 2000 Pomeranz et al.
6014590 January 11, 2000 Whayne et al.
6119030 September 12, 2000 Morency
6172499 January 9, 2001 Ashe
6216043 April 10, 2001 Swanson et al.
6216044 April 10, 2001 Kordis
6239724 May 29, 2001 Doron et al.
6332089 December 18, 2001 Acker et al.
6428537 August 6, 2002 Swanson et al.
6456864 September 24, 2002 Swanson et al.
6484118 November 19, 2002 Govari
6574492 June 3, 2003 Ben-Haim et al.
6584345 June 24, 2003 Govari
6600948 July 29, 2003 Ben-Haim et al.
6618612 September 9, 2003 Acker et al.
6690963 February 10, 2004 Ben-Haim et al.
6738655 May 18, 2004 Sen et al.
6741878 May 25, 2004 Fuimaono et al.
6748255 June 8, 2004 Fuimaono et al.
6780183 August 24, 2004 Jimenez, Jr. et al.
6788967 September 7, 2004 Ben-Haim et al.
6837886 January 4, 2005 Collins et al.
6866662 March 15, 2005 Fuimaono et al.
6892091 May 10, 2005 Ben-Haim et al.
6970730 November 29, 2005 Fuimaono et al.
6973340 December 6, 2005 Fuimaono et al.
6980858 December 27, 2005 Fuimaono et al.
7048734 May 23, 2006 Fleischman et al.
7149563 December 12, 2006 Fuimaono et al.
7255695 August 14, 2007 Falwell et al.
7257434 August 14, 2007 Fuimaono et al.
7399299 July 15, 2008 Daniel et al.
7410486 August 12, 2008 Fuimaono et al.
7522950 April 21, 2009 Fuimaono et al.
7536218 May 19, 2009 Govari et al.
RE41334 May 11, 2010 Beatty et al.
7756576 July 13, 2010 Levin
7846157 December 7, 2010 Kozel
7848787 December 7, 2010 Osadchy
7869865 January 11, 2011 Govari et al.
7930018 April 19, 2011 Harlev et al.
8007495 August 30, 2011 McDaniel et al.
8048063 November 1, 2011 Aeby et al.
8064985 November 22, 2011 Peterson
8103327 January 24, 2012 Harlev et al.
8167845 May 1, 2012 Wang et al.
8224416 July 17, 2012 De La Rama et al.
8235988 August 7, 2012 Davis et al.
8346339 January 1, 2013 Kordis et al.
8435232 May 7, 2013 Aeby et al.
8447377 May 21, 2013 Harlev et al.
8456182 June 4, 2013 Bar-Tal et al.
8498686 July 30, 2013 Grunewald
8517999 August 27, 2013 Pappone et al.
8545490 October 1, 2013 Mihajlovic et al.
8560086 October 15, 2013 Just et al.
8567265 October 29, 2013 Aeby et al.
8712550 April 29, 2014 Grunewald
8755861 June 17, 2014 Harlev et al.
8825130 September 2, 2014 Just et al.
8906011 December 9, 2014 Gelbart et al.
8945120 February 3, 2015 McDaniel et al.
8979839 March 17, 2015 De La Rama et al.
9037264 May 19, 2015 Just et al.
9131980 September 15, 2015 Bloom
9204929 December 8, 2015 Solis
9272132 March 1, 2016 Laufer
9277960 March 8, 2016 Weinkam et al.
9314208 April 19, 2016 Altmann et al.
9339331 May 17, 2016 Tegg et al.
9486282 November 8, 2016 Solis
9526426 December 27, 2016 Lim
9554718 January 31, 2017 Bar-Tal et al.
D782686 March 28, 2017 Werneth et al.
9585588 March 7, 2017 Marecki et al.
9597036 March 21, 2017 Aeby et al.
9687297 June 27, 2017 Just et al.
9693733 July 4, 2017 Altmann et al.
9782099 October 10, 2017 Williams et al.
9788895 October 17, 2017 Solis
9801681 October 31, 2017 Laske et al.
9814618 November 14, 2017 Nguyen et al.
9833161 December 5, 2017 Govari
9894756 February 13, 2018 Weinkam et al.
9895073 February 20, 2018 Solis
9907609 March 6, 2018 Cao et al.
9974460 May 22, 2018 Wu et al.
9986949 June 5, 2018 Govari et al.
9993160 June 12, 2018 Salvestro et al.
10014607 July 3, 2018 Govari et al.
10028376 July 17, 2018 Weinkam et al.
10034637 July 31, 2018 Harlev et al.
10039494 August 7, 2018 Altmann et al.
10045707 August 14, 2018 Govari
10078713 September 18, 2018 Auerbach et al.
10111623 October 30, 2018 Jung et al.
10130420 November 20, 2018 Basu et al.
10136828 November 27, 2018 Houben et al.
10143394 December 4, 2018 Solis
10172536 January 8, 2019 Maskara et al.
10182762 January 22, 2019 Just et al.
10194818 February 5, 2019 Williams et al.
10201311 February 12, 2019 Chou et al.
10219860 March 5, 2019 Harlev et al.
10219861 March 5, 2019 Just et al.
10231328 March 12, 2019 Weinkam et al.
10238309 March 26, 2019 Bar-Tal et al.
10278590 May 7, 2019 Salvestro et al.
D851774 June 18, 2019 Werneth et al.
10314505 June 11, 2019 Williams et al.
10314507 June 11, 2019 Govari et al.
10314648 June 11, 2019 Ge et al.
10314649 June 11, 2019 Bakos et al.
10349855 July 16, 2019 Zeidan et al.
10350003 July 16, 2019 Weinkam et al.
10362991 July 30, 2019 Tran et al.
10375827 August 6, 2019 Weinkam et al.
10376170 August 13, 2019 Quinn et al.
10376221 August 13, 2019 Iyun et al.
10398348 September 3, 2019 Osadchy et al.
10403053 September 3, 2019 Katz et al.
10441188 October 15, 2019 Katz et al.
10470682 November 12, 2019 Deno et al.
10470714 November 12, 2019 Altmann et al.
10482198 November 19, 2019 Auerbach et al.
10492857 December 3, 2019 Guggenberger et al.
10542620 January 21, 2020 Weinkam et al.
10575743 March 3, 2020 Basu et al.
10575745 March 3, 2020 Solis
10582871 March 10, 2020 Williams et al.
10582894 March 10, 2020 Ben Zrihem et al.
10596346 March 24, 2020 Aeby et al.
10602947 March 31, 2020 Govari et al.
10617867 April 14, 2020 Mswanathan et al.
10660702 May 26, 2020 Mswanathan et al.
10667753 June 2, 2020 Werneth et al.
10674929 June 9, 2020 Houben et al.
10681805 June 9, 2020 Weinkam et al.
10682181 June 16, 2020 Cohen et al.
10687892 June 23, 2020 Long et al.
10702178 July 7, 2020 Dahlen et al.
10716477 July 21, 2020 Salvestro et al.
10758304 September 1, 2020 Aujla
10765371 September 8, 2020 Hayam et al.
10772566 September 15, 2020 Aujila
10799281 October 13, 2020 Goertzen et al.
10842558 November 24, 2020 Harlev et al.
10842561 November 24, 2020 Mswanathan et al.
10863914 December 15, 2020 Govari et al.
10881376 January 5, 2021 Shemesh et al.
10898139 January 26, 2021 Guta et al.
10905329 February 2, 2021 Bar-Tal et al.
10912484 February 9, 2021 Ziv-Ari et al.
10918306 February 16, 2021 Govari et al.
10939871 March 9, 2021 Altmann et al.
10952795 March 23, 2021 Cohen et al.
10973426 April 13, 2021 Williams et al.
10973461 April 13, 2021 Baram et al.
10987045 April 27, 2021 Basu et al.
11006902 May 18, 2021 Bonyak et al.
11040208 June 22, 2021 Govari et al.
11045628 June 29, 2021 Beeckler et al.
11051877 July 6, 2021 Sliwa et al.
11109788 September 7, 2021 Rottmann et al.
11116435 September 14, 2021 Urman et al.
11129574 September 28, 2021 Cohen et al.
11160482 November 2, 2021 Solis
11164371 November 2, 2021 Yellin et al.
11234762 February 1, 2022 Cheng
11241280 February 8, 2022 Ng
20040210121 October 21, 2004 Fuimaono et al.
20060009689 January 12, 2006 Fuimaono et al.
20060009690 January 12, 2006 Fuimaono et al.
20060100669 May 11, 2006 Fuimaono et al.
20070093806 April 26, 2007 Desai et al.
20070276212 November 29, 2007 Fuimaono et al.
20080234564 September 25, 2008 Beatty et al.
20110118726 May 19, 2011 De La Rama et al.
20110160574 June 30, 2011 Harlev et al.
20110190625 August 4, 2011 Harlev et al.
20110245756 October 6, 2011 Arora et al.
20110301597 December 8, 2011 McDaniel et al.
20130172872 July 4, 2013 Subramaniam et al.
20130172883 July 4, 2013 Lopes et al.
20130178850 July 11, 2013 Lopes et al.
20130190587 July 25, 2013 Lopes et al.
20130296852 November 7, 2013 Madjarov et al.
20140025069 January 23, 2014 Willard et al.
20140052118 February 20, 2014 Laske et al.
20140180147 June 26, 2014 Thakur et al.
20140180151 June 26, 2014 Maskara et al.
20140180152 June 26, 2014 Maskara et al.
20140257069 September 11, 2014 Eliason et al.
20140276712 September 18, 2014 Mallin et al.
20140309512 October 16, 2014 Govari et al.
20150011991 January 8, 2015 Buysman et al.
20150045863 February 12, 2015 Litscher et al.
20150080693 March 19, 2015 Solis
20150105770 April 16, 2015 Amit
20150119878 April 30, 2015 Heisel et al.
20150133919 May 14, 2015 McDaniel et al.
20150208942 July 30, 2015 Bar-Tal et al.
20150250424 September 10, 2015 Govari et al.
20150270634 September 24, 2015 Buesseler et al.
20150342532 December 3, 2015 Basu et al.
20160081746 March 24, 2016 Solis
20160113582 April 28, 2016 Altmann et al.
20160113709 April 28, 2016 Maor
20160183877 June 30, 2016 Williams et al.
20160228023 August 11, 2016 Govari
20160228062 August 11, 2016 Altmann et al.
20160278853 September 29, 2016 Ogle et al.
20160302858 October 20, 2016 Bencini
20160338770 November 24, 2016 Bar-Tal et al.
20170027638 February 2, 2017 Solis
20170065227 March 9, 2017 Marrs et al.
20170071543 March 16, 2017 Basu et al.
20170071544 March 16, 2017 Basu et al.
20170071665 March 16, 2017 Solis
20170095173 April 6, 2017 Bar-Tal et al.
20170100187 April 13, 2017 Basu et al.
20170143227 May 25, 2017 Marecki et al.
20170156790 June 8, 2017 Aujla
20170172442 June 22, 2017 Govari
20170185702 June 29, 2017 Auerbach et al.
20170202515 July 20, 2017 Zrihem et al.
20170221262 August 3, 2017 Laughner et al.
20170224958 August 10, 2017 Cummings et al.
20170265812 September 21, 2017 Williams et al.
20170281031 October 5, 2017 Houben et al.
20170281268 October 5, 2017 Tran et al.
20170296125 October 19, 2017 Altmann et al.
20170296251 October 19, 2017 Wu et al.
20170347959 December 7, 2017 Guta et al.
20170354338 December 14, 2017 Levin et al.
20170354339 December 14, 2017 Zeidan et al.
20170354364 December 14, 2017 Bar-Tal et al.
20180008203 January 11, 2018 Iyun et al.
20180028084 February 1, 2018 Williams et al.
20180049803 February 22, 2018 Solis
20180085064 March 29, 2018 Auerbach et al.
20180132749 May 17, 2018 Govari et al.
20180137687 May 17, 2018 Katz et al.
20180160936 June 14, 2018 Govari et al.
20180160978 June 14, 2018 Cohen et al.
20180168511 June 21, 2018 Hall et al.
20180184982 July 5, 2018 Basu et al.
20180192958 July 12, 2018 Wu
20180206792 July 26, 2018 Auerbach et al.
20180235692 August 23, 2018 Efimov et al.
20180249959 September 6, 2018 Osypka
20180256109 September 13, 2018 Wu et al.
20180279954 October 4, 2018 Hayam et al.
20180303414 October 25, 2018 Toth et al.
20180310987 November 1, 2018 Altmann et al.
20180311497 November 1, 2018 Viswanathan et al.
20180338722 November 29, 2018 Altmann et al.
20180344188 December 6, 2018 Govari
20180344202 December 6, 2018 Bar-Tal et al.
20180344251 December 6, 2018 Harlev et al.
20180344393 December 6, 2018 Gruba et al.
20180360534 December 20, 2018 Teplitsky et al.
20180365355 December 20, 2018 Auerbach et al.
20190000540 January 3, 2019 Cohen et al.
20190008582 January 10, 2019 Govari et al.
20190015007 January 17, 2019 Rottmann et al.
20190030328 January 31, 2019 Stewart et al.
20190053708 February 21, 2019 Gliner
20190059766 February 28, 2019 Houben et al.
20190069950 March 7, 2019 Viswanathan et al.
20190069954 March 7, 2019 Cohen et al.
20190117111 April 25, 2019 Osadchy et al.
20190117303 April 25, 2019 Claude et al.
20190117315 April 25, 2019 Keyes et al.
20190125439 May 2, 2019 Rohl et al.
20190133552 May 9, 2019 Shemesh et al.
20190142293 May 16, 2019 Solis
20190164633 May 30, 2019 Ingel et al.
20190167137 June 6, 2019 Bar-Tal et al.
20190167140 June 6, 2019 Williams et al.
20190188909 June 20, 2019 Yellin et al.
20190201664 July 4, 2019 Govari
20190209089 July 11, 2019 Baram et al.
20190216346 July 18, 2019 Ghodrati et al.
20190216347 July 18, 2019 Ghodrati et al.
20190231421 August 1, 2019 Mswanathan et al.
20190231423 August 1, 2019 Weinkam et al.
20190239811 August 8, 2019 Just et al.
20190246935 August 15, 2019 Govari et al.
20190298442 October 3, 2019 Ogata et al.
20190314083 October 17, 2019 Herrera et al.
20190328260 October 31, 2019 Zeidan et al.
20190343580 November 14, 2019 Nguyen et al.
20200000518 January 2, 2020 Kiernan et al.
20200008705 January 9, 2020 Ziv-Ari et al.
20200008869 January 9, 2020 Byrd
20200009378 January 9, 2020 Stewart et al.
20200015890 January 16, 2020 To et al.
20200022653 January 23, 2020 Moisa
20200029845 January 30, 2020 Baram et al.
20200046421 February 13, 2020 Govari
20200046423 February 13, 2020 Mswanathan et al.
20200060569 February 27, 2020 Tegg
20200077959 March 12, 2020 Altmann et al.
20200093539 March 26, 2020 Long et al.
20200129089 April 30, 2020 Gliner et al.
20200129125 April 30, 2020 Govari et al.
20200129128 April 30, 2020 Gliner et al.
20200179650 June 11, 2020 Beeckler et al.
20200196896 June 25, 2020 Solis
20200205689 July 2, 2020 Squires et al.
20200205690 July 2, 2020 Williams et al.
20200205737 July 2, 2020 Beeckler
20200205876 July 2, 2020 Govari
20200205892 July 2, 2020 Viswanathan et al.
20200206461 July 2, 2020 Govari et al.
20200206498 July 2, 2020 Arora et al.
20200289197 September 17, 2020 Viswanathan et al.
20200297234 September 24, 2020 Houben et al.
20200297281 September 24, 2020 Basu et al.
20200305726 October 1, 2020 Salvestro et al.
20200305946 October 1, 2020 Desimone et al.
20200397328 December 24, 2020 Altmann et al.
20200398048 December 24, 2020 Krimsky et al.
20210015549 January 21, 2021 Haghighi-Mood et al.
20210022684 January 28, 2021 Govari et al.
20210045805 February 18, 2021 Govari et al.
20210059549 March 4, 2021 Urman et al.
20210059550 March 4, 2021 Urman et al.
20210059608 March 4, 2021 Beeckler et al.
20210059743 March 4, 2021 Govari
20210059747 March 4, 2021 Krans et al.
20210077184 March 18, 2021 Basu et al.
20210082157 March 18, 2021 Rosenberg et al.
20210085200 March 25, 2021 Auerbach et al.
20210085204 March 25, 2021 Auerbach et al.
20210085215 March 25, 2021 Auerbach et al.
20210085387 March 25, 2021 Amit et al.
20210093292 April 1, 2021 Baram et al.
20210093294 April 1, 2021 Shemesh et al.
20210093374 April 1, 2021 Govari et al.
20210093377 April 1, 2021 Herrera et al.
20210100612 April 8, 2021 Baron et al.
20210113822 April 22, 2021 Beeckler et al.
20210127999 May 6, 2021 Govari et al.
20210128010 May 6, 2021 Govari et al.
20210133516 May 6, 2021 Govari et al.
20210145282 May 20, 2021 Bar-Tal et al.
20210161592 June 3, 2021 Altmann et al.
20210169421 June 10, 2021 Govari
20210169550 June 10, 2021 Govari et al.
20210169567 June 10, 2021 Govari et al.
20210169568 June 10, 2021 Govari et al.
20210177294 June 17, 2021 Gliner et al.
20210177356 June 17, 2021 Gliner et al.
20210177503 June 17, 2021 Altmann et al.
20210178166 June 17, 2021 Govari et al.
20210186363 June 24, 2021 Gliner et al.
20210186604 June 24, 2021 Altmann et al.
20210187241 June 24, 2021 Govari et al.
20210196372 July 1, 2021 Altmann et al.
20210196394 July 1, 2021 Govari et al.
20210212591 July 15, 2021 Govari et al.
20210219904 July 22, 2021 Yarnitsky et al.
20210278936 September 9, 2021 Katz et al.
20210282659 September 16, 2021 Govari et al.
20210307815 October 7, 2021 Govari et al.
20210308424 October 7, 2021 Beeckler et al.
20210338319 November 4, 2021 Govari et al.
Foreign Patent Documents
111248993 June 2020 CN
111248996 June 2020 CN
0668740 August 1995 EP
0644738 March 2000 EP
0727183 November 2002 EP
0727184 December 2002 EP
2783651 October 2014 EP
2699151 November 2015 EP
2699152 November 2015 EP
2699153 December 2015 EP
2498706 April 2016 EP
2578173 June 2017 EP
3238645 November 2017 EP
2884931 January 2018 EP
2641555 June 2019 EP
2349440 August 2019 EP
3318211 December 2019 EP
3581135 December 2019 EP
2736434 February 2020 EP
3451962 March 2020 EP
3972510 March 2022 EP
9421167 September 1994 WO
9421169 September 1994 WO
1995008943 April 1995 WO
9625095 August 1996 WO
9634560 November 1996 WO
0182814 May 2002 WO
2004087249 October 2004 WO
2012100185 July 2012 WO
2013052852 April 2013 WO
2013162884 October 2013 WO
2013173917 November 2013 WO
2013176881 November 2013 WO
2014176205 October 2014 WO
2016019760 February 2016 WO
2016044687 March 2016 WO
WO-2017041889 March 2017 WO
2018111600 June 2018 WO
2018191149 October 2018 WO
2019084442 May 2019 WO
2019143960 July 2019 WO
2020026217 February 2020 WO
2020206328 October 2020 WO
Other references
  • Extended European Search Report and Opinion dated May 7, 2024, from corresponding European Application No. 23215306.4.
Patent History
Patent number: 12636078
Type: Grant
Filed: Nov 2, 2023
Date of Patent: May 26, 2026
Patent Publication Number: 20240189023
Assignee: Biosense Webster (Israel) Ltd. (Yokneam)
Inventors: Audrey Vu (Irvine, CA), Audrey Claire Goo (Irvine, CA), Robert Kato (Irvine, CA), Amar Patel (Irvine, CA), Thanh Nguyen (El Monte, CA), Anand Rao (Irvine, CA), Paul Suarez (La Crescenta, CA), Jacob Roseberry (Upland, CA)
Primary Examiner: Linda C Dvorak
Assistant Examiner: Abigail Bock
Application Number: 18/500,617
Classifications
Current U.S. Class: Stereotaxic Device (606/130)
International Classification: A61B 18/14 (20060101); A61B 17/00 (20060101); A61B 18/00 (20060101); A61B 34/20 (20160101); A61B 90/00 (20160101);